Province 2 threatens to knock Supreme Court door

KATHMANDU, SEPTEMBER 26

Months after the two bills related to adjustment of Nepal Police and Provincial Police were authenticated, provincial governments have not been able to take control of police. As a result, Province 2 government has sent an angry letter to the federal home ministry asking it to initiate the adjustment work within a week or else it would knock the door of the Supreme Court.

The bill related to adjustment of police personnel in Nepal Police and Provincial Police was authenticated by the president on 11 February 2020. The bill related to operation, supervision and coordination of Nepal Police and Provincial Police was also authenticated by the president on the same date.

Minister of Internal Affairs and Law of Province 2 Gyanendra Yadav said that in the absence of adjustment of Nepal Police and Provincial Police, the federal government had been transferring and promoting police personnel and interfering in the work of the provincial government.

“People of this province want to see an improved police administration and this is a legitimate aspiration in the federal set up, but the provincial government has not been able to meet the people’s legitimate desire,” he said.

Yadav said as per Schedule 6 of the constitution, the provincial government has jurisdiction over the provincial police and administration. Unfortunately, the province has not been able to exercise its powers. He said the federal government had been misusing power with the motive of defaming the provinces.

“The federal government says the provinces are not doing enough to improve policing, but the reality is that the federal government is not allowing the provinces to do things that are under the provincial governments’ jurisdiction,” he added.

Yadav said there was no reason for delaying adjustment of Nepal Police and Provincial Police as organisational and management surveys had already been approved for all the seven provinces.

Spokesperson for the federal home ministry Chakra Bahadur Budha said finalising the organisational and management survey took a little time and that was the only reason behind the delay in the adjustment of Nepal Police and Provincial Police.

“We have sent the documents to the Cabinet. Once the federal Cabinet endorses the document, adjustment will be done,” he added.

Chief Attorney of Province 2 Dipendra Jha said that in the absence of adjustment of Nepal Police and Provincial Police, Province 2 government was not in a position to directly mobilise the police force to probe any criminal incident.

He said that Province 2 government faced obstacles in mobilising the civil service due to interference of the federal government in the provincial government’s affairs.

“How can the provincial government function effectively if it cannot mobilise civil servants and the police force that are supposed to be under its jurisdiction?,” he wondered.

Feature image: File

A version of this article appears in e-paper on September 27, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.